


Meditations on a Cloak

by Gail Riordan (lferion)



Category: Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Gen, Poetry, Poetry Sequence, Zine, clothing-fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2001-05-01
Updated: 2001-05-01
Packaged: 2017-10-08 13:06:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/75935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lferion/pseuds/Gail%20Riordan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Theme and variations on a garment.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Meditations on a Cloak

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published in "Rituals and Meditations". Illustrated with 'Fall of Brown' and 'Relics'

  


* * *

Rich brown warmth, curve of arm,  
An infant cradled at elbow,  
A spark of light,  
Given to grow in good soil.

Keep the child warm, good Knight,  
Keep him safe from harm  
Teach him your Force.  
Give him your light,  
Wrapped snug in brown safety.

 

* * *

Proof:  
Wizards wear cloaks  
Cloaks are magical  
Jedi are wizards

 

* * *

Follow the fall of brown  
   The swirl of hem  
   The sweep of sleeve  
   The swift, long stride

Follow the fall of brown  
   The broad back  
   The bright sword  
   The bronze touched with silver

Follow the fall of brown  
   A hard road  
   A heart full  
   A hand held out to guide

Now you have a cloak of your own  
Now you have a future  
Now you have hope

   Padawan  
   Obi-Wan

Follow the fall of brown

 

* * *

Measure, cut, stitch, hem  
Tuck, fold, hang, drape  
Wash, shake, brush, dry

Needle, flashing in the light, mending rents  
Needle, shining by the fire, darning tears  
Needle, glinting under stars, patching holes

Over and under, in and out  
Holding the whole together  
Fragile, sturdy structure

 

* * *

A cloak may conceal  
   bruises  
A cloak may conceal  
   blood  
A cloak may conceal  
   heartache  
A cloak may conceal  
   Love

I would strip away the shadows  
   bind your wounds  
   heal your heart  
   grow in your love

 

* * *

I cover you gently with my cloak  
   (paler than yours, shorter than yours)  
From the chill air,  
From the prying eyes,  
   the side-long, salacious glances,  
From the violent hands held in check  
   by fear and awe and wonder.

They thought to steal your dignity  
   along with your clothes,  
Steal your serenity  
   along with your sabre.

They tried to wound your power  
   by making you bleed  
Break your strength  
   by breaking your body  
Darken your Light  
   with their lust

They want to think that without a cloak  
A Jedi is only  
   a man,  
A naked man,  
   damaged and defenseless.

I know better.

They know better,  
Now.

But still, I cover you gently with my cloak,  
and help you home.

 

* * *

Huddle together under a brown blanket  
Shelter together inside a brown cocoon

Fire and love within, all cold without

Blue and green blades, sheathed in brown  
Blue and green, sleeping sheathed together

Fire and love within, warming each other

 

* * *

No cloaks obscure the light  
Not in this battle  
Recollect their embrace later

No cloak obscures the light  
Not on this pyre  
Recollect the love, later.

 

* * *

Shelter the student as you were sheltered:  
   Warmth in the cold  
   Dry in the wet  
   Comfort in sorrow  
Teach the Padawan as you were taught:  
   Life in the soil  
   Life in the water  
   Life in the air  
   Life in the fire  
Challenge the child as you were challenged:  
   Quiet your mind  
   Follow the Light  
   Study to grow

Shelter the student as you were sheltered:  
   Held and holding  
   Trusted and trusting  
   Warmth in the cold of space

 

* * *

Hide the children, cloak of necessity  
Hide the sparks in woven wool-shadows  
Hide them from the Darkness  
Hide them in the Light

 

* * *

Dust-brown, earth-brown, umber-brown  
Protection from too-bright, doubled suns  
Nut-brown, mouse-brown, desert-brown  
Protection from too-bright, seeking eyes  
Black-brown, grey-brown, bronze-brown  
Protection from too-bright, deadly dreams

Retreat to consolation  
In soft, brown cloth  
Remember being held.

 

* * *

Love, wrapped within the heart, waiting for release  
Hope, folded in a chest, waiting for the dawn

A rock in one pocket  
  is not the same  
As a stone in one shoe.

 

* * *

Faded, thread-bare, brown outworn  
Left behind for the wide dazzle of deep blue.

What will Vader do with this shroud of victory?  
What will Anakin do with this trophy of defeat?

 

* * *

  



End file.
